Do You Really Want Good Health?
“WHO wouldn’t want good health?” you may ask. Yes, it is normal for people to want to continue in good health or to recover from sickness. Physical well-being contributes so much toward the enjoyment of life.
Many people, however, overlook the most important health factor. And what is that? It is the role that man’s Creator, Jehovah God, can play in our enjoyment of health. The words of Proverbs 4:22 especially apply to the wise sayings found in his Word, the Bible. It tells us that these are “life to those finding them and health to all their flesh.”
Good health is definitely tied in with our having due regard for the Creator’s commands. The ancient Israelites, for example, were told that paying attention to God’s commandments would lead to their avoiding the maladies that came upon the Egyptians. This assurance was followed up with the words: “I am Jehovah who is healing you.” (Ex. 15:26) Does this mean that the Israelites were to expect miraculous healing? No, health benefits resulted naturally from obedience to God’s commands.
The Law that God gave the Israelites set forth a high standard of cleanliness that promoted the preservation of the people’s health. For example, the requirement that human excrement be buried deterred the spread of such diseases as dysentery and typhoid fever. (Deut. 23:12, 13) Also, the regulations concerning contamination by contact with dead humans or animals safeguarded against transmitting serious infections.—Lev. 11:32-38; Num. 19:11-22.
Similarly today, if we respect the principles of the Law given to the Israelites by adhering to a sound standard of personal cleanliness, we can protect our health. But this is not the only way in which our having regard for the Creator can benefit us from the health standpoint. Conforming to God’s commands in matters of conduct can also safeguard our physical well-being. The Bible commands: “Do not come to be among heavy drinkers of wine, among those who are gluttonous eaters of flesh.” (Prov. 23:20) “Flee from fornication.” (1 Cor. 6:18) “Let marriage be honorable among all, and the marriage bed be without defilement.” (Heb. 13:4) Think of the terrible ailments, including loathsome venereal diseases, cirrhosis of the liver and delirium tremens, that many persons could have avoided had they obeyed God’s Word.
Our having regard for the Creator and his commands can also shield us from emotional stresses. The Bible counsels: “Let all malicious bitterness and anger and wrath and screaming and abusive speech be taken away from you along with all badness.” (Eph. 4:31) “Let us not become egotistical, stirring up competition with one another, envying one another.” (Gal. 5:26) When a person is often subjected to the stresses of envy, hate and selfish ambition, he may find himself suffering physically, perhaps from skin, respiratory or digestive problems. On the other hand, love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, mildness and self-control—qualities that the Bible encourages us to cultivate—have a wholesome effect on us, mentally, physically and emotionally.—Gal. 5:22, 23.
So, then, even now a person can safeguard his health by seeking to live in the way the Creator purposed that mankind live. That course can add years to one’s life. But what if a person is sick?
Encouraging words appear in the Bible at Psalm 41:3: “Jehovah himself will sustain him upon a divan of illness; all his bed you will certainly change during his sickness.” The person who has an understanding of God’s Word can take comfort in the fact that his sickness is not a punishment for some sin. He recognizes that his sickness is due to human weaknesses and imperfections. Despite pain, he is able to maintain a comparatively cheerful outlook, being strengthened by God’s spirit to endure.
Furthermore, the servant of God has confidence that the time is fast approaching when all sickness and pain will be things of the forgotten past. He has unshakable faith in the Bible’s promise: “[God] will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:4; see also Isaiah 65:17.) This marvelous promise furnishes the basis for hope—a vital factor in maintaining a happy disposition in the face of unpleasant circumstances.
To many, though, the promise of life free from sickness and pain may seem just too good to be true. But we should not allow the unbelief of others to rob us of a precious hope. Hope is a powerful force. Writes Dr. Karl Menninger in The Vital Balance: “Our present scientific knowledge is not sufficient to recognize or identify or properly credit all the forces working for recovery any more than we know in any case all the forces against which we are working. And this we know: Sometimes hope fails, and death ensues, while sometimes hope endures, and the impossible happens.”—Page 386.
It is noteworthy that the Creator knew full well that imperfect humans would regard as unbelievable his promise to abolish sickness and pain. Evidently for this reason he added: “These words are faithful and true.”—Rev. 21:5.
Nothing, not even death, can prevent the servant of God from the realization of his Bible-based hope. Why not? Because, through a resurrection from the dead, he will have the opportunity to enjoy life free from all sickness and pain. Jesus Christ gave this assurance: “The hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth.”—John 5:28, 29, Common Bible.
If you are among those who really want good health, make sure that your life is in harmony with God’s purpose for mankind. Study the Bible and apply its admonition to your life. This can benefit your health now and assure you of a future without sickness and pain.
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“God himself will be with them. And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore.”—Rev. 21:3, 4.